English chemist John C. Kendrew studied the structure of proteins, and pioneered the use of x-ray crystallography in determining protein structures. In 1957 he successfully applied Max F. Perutz's isomorphic replacement technique to present an accurate three-dimensional model of the arrangement of amino acids in the myoglobin molecule, where oxygen is stored for the muscles. His work helped set the stage for the development of molecular biology, and Kendrew and Perutz shared the 1962 Nobel Prize for Chemistry. Kendrew was the founder and for decades Editor-in-Chief of the scientific journal Journal of Molecular Biology in 1959.

His parents divorced when he was an infant, and he was raised by his father, who was a climatologist at Oxford. He wore glasses, and for reasons uncertain he was called "Binks" by his friends. He was married for several years ending with divorce in 1956, but had no children. He retired in 1987, and died ten years later.